The Platform

Main Plot

"The Platform" is a Spanish science fiction horror film set in a dystopian vertical prison where inmates are assigned to different levels. Each day, a platform laden with food descends from the top, stopping briefly at each level. Those on higher levels eat well, while those below receive progressively less, often leaving nothing for the lowest levels. The story follows Goreng, who voluntarily enters the prison and experiences the brutal reality of the system. As he moves between levels, he encounters various inmates, each with their own perspectives and survival strategies. Goreng's journey becomes a quest for understanding and change, highlighting themes of inequality, solidarity, and human nature. The film explores the moral and ethical dilemmas faced by individuals in a system designed to pit them against each other, ultimately questioning the possibility of collective action and the nature of humanity itself.

Characters

• Ivan Massagué plays Goreng, a man who voluntarily enters a vertical prison to earn a diploma, navigating its brutal survival dynamics and seeking to bring about change.
• Zorion Eguileor plays Trimagasi, an elderly inmate who mentors the protagonist about survival in a vertical prison where food distribution is a deadly struggle.
• Antonia San Juan plays Imoguiri, a former administration employee who becomes an inmate, advocating for fair food distribution within the vertical prison system.

Ending Explained

In the movie "The Platform," directed by Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia, the ending is both ambiguous and symbolic. The protagonist, Goreng, descends to the lowest level of the vertical prison with Baharat, aiming to distribute food fairly and send a message to the administration. They discover a young girl, the presumed daughter of Miharu, at the very bottom. Goreng decides that the girl herself should be the message, symbolizing innocence and hope. He places her on the platform, which ascends back to the top levels. Goreng, realizing his journey has ended, stays behind, signifying his acceptance of his fate and the completion of his mission. The film concludes with the platform rising, carrying the girl upwards, leaving her fate and the impact of the message open to interpretation. This ending underscores themes of sacrifice, societal critique, and the possibility of change through innocence and purity, while deliberately leaving the resolution ambiguous to provoke thought and discussion among viewers.